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Contre La Mondialisation : Xénophobie, Politiques Identitaires Et Populisme D’Exclusion En Europe Occidentale Hans-Georg Betz

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Contre La Mondialisation : Xénophobie, Politiques Identitaires Et Populisme D’Exclusion En Europe Occidentale Hans-Georg Betz Document generated on 09/29/2021 7:11 p.m. Politique et Sociétés Contre la mondialisation : xénophobie, politiques identitaires et populisme d’exclusion en Europe occidentale Hans-Georg Betz Les populismes Article abstract Volume 21, Number 2, 2002 In recent years, the radical populist right in Western Europe developed a comprehensive ideological position. The central characteristics of this ideology URI: https://id.erudit.org/iderudit/000477ar are a strong emphasis on difference and on the defense of cultural DOI: https://doi.org/10.7202/000477ar particularity. Both are used to mobilize support against what the populist right sees as the twin threats to the survival of European culture and Western See table of contents values: globalization and Islam. With this ideology, the populist right has appealed to a broad range of the electorate, which goes well beyond those groups objectively and subjectively most threatened by economic, social, and cultural modernization. Given the growing importance of cultural issues and Publisher(s) particularly questions of collective identity in contemporary politics, the Société québécoise de science politique populist right is bound to continue to pose a considerable challenge to liberal democracies for the foreseeable future. ISSN 1203-9438 (print) 1703-8480 (digital) Explore this journal Cite this article Betz, H.-G. (2002). Contre la mondialisation : xénophobie, politiques identitaires et populisme d’exclusion en Europe occidentale. Politique et Sociétés, 21(2), 9–28. https://doi.org/10.7202/000477ar Tous droits de reproduction, d'adaptation et de diffusion réservés © Société This document is protected by copyright law. Use of the services of Érudit québécoise de science politique, 2002 (including reproduction) is subject to its terms and conditions, which can be viewed online. https://apropos.erudit.org/en/users/policy-on-use/ This article is disseminated and preserved by Érudit. Érudit is a non-profit inter-university consortium of the Université de Montréal, Université Laval, and the Université du Québec à Montréal. Its mission is to promote and disseminate research. https://www.erudit.org/en/ *Montage 21, 2 12/13/02 03:32 Page 9 CONTRE LA MONDIALISATION: XÉNOPHOBIE, POLITIQUES IDENTITAIRES ET POPULISME D’EXCLUSION EN EUROPE OCCIDENTALE* Hans-Georg Betz Université de Genève Lors des plus récentes élections locales en Belgique, le Vlaams Blok a gagné plus de 35 % du vote à Antwerp, confirmant sa position de plus grand parti dans une des villes les plus affluentes d’Europe occidentale. Le résultat a posé un défi fondamental aux partis établis qui poursuivaient depuis plusieurs années une politique consistant à maintenir un cordon sanitaire autour du Vlaams Blok, essentiellement pour le marginaliser en le traitant comme un paria. Pour justifier leur stratégie, les partis établis ont accusé le Vlaams Blok d’être « un parti intolérant, xénophobe et raciste » qui cherchait à promouvoir la haine face aux étrangers vivant en Belgique 1. Étant donné le support gran- dissant lors des élections, les chefs du Vlaams Blok devinrent progres- sivement frustrés de la tentative visant à l’écarter du pouvoir et lancè- rent une campagne pour contrer les accusations de racisme. En soi, ce n’était guère surprenant. Ce qui est intéressant, c’est de quelle manière ils ont essayé de justifier leur position. Dans une brochure intitulée Préjugés, le parti rejeta l’idée qu’il était raciste. Définissant le racisme comme « la haine ou le dédain pour un autre peuple ou le mauvais trai- tement de quelqu’un en raison de sa race ou de son origine ethnique », le parti affirma que ces sentiments lui étaient « complètement étran- gers ». Puisque le Vlaams Blok se battait pour « le droit des Flamands d’être eux-mêmes », pourquoi le parti « refuserait-il ce droit aux autres » ? Même s’il reconnaissait être nationaliste, le parti prétendit que cela signifiait qu’il regardait le « monde dans sa diversité (meervoud)» et qu’il considérait cette diversité comme quelque chose d’enrichissant. Le nationalisme, particulièrement le nationalisme flamand, ne devait * Traduit de l’anglais par Jean-Sébastien Guy, sous la supervision de Victor Armony. 1. Nova Civitas, « Het Cordon Sanitaire : en vloek of een zegen voor de democra- tie ? ». Internet : < http://www.ping.be/novacivitas/cordonsanitaire. html >. Hans-Georg Betz, département de science politique, Université de Genève, 40, Bd. du Pont d’Arve CH-1211, (Genève 4), Suisse Courriel : [email protected]. Politique et Sociétés, vol. 21, no 2, 2002 *Montage 21, 2 12/13/02 03:32 Page 10 10 HANS GEORG BETZ pas être confondu avec le racisme ; il signifiait seulement le fait de pré- férer son propre peuple aux autres. Ceci était aussi naturel que « la pré- férence pour sa propre famille par rapport aux étrangers, la préférence pour ses amis par rapport aux gens qu’on ne connaît pas personnelle- ment, la préférence pour sa propre culture par rapport aux cultures étrangères 2 ». Filip Dewinter, leader charismatique du Vlaams Blok, résumait cette position en soutenant que le parti voulait seulement « préserver notre identité et notre culture. Après tout, le racisme signi- fie la croyance que, sur la base de critères raciaux, un groupe est supé- rieur ou inférieur à un autre. Ce n’est pas ce que nous croyons ; tout le monde est égal mais non pas identique 3 ». Le Vlaams Blok est un des meilleurs exemples d’un nouveau type de partis populistes de droite qui est apparu durant les années 1990 comme l’une des nouvelles forces politiques les plus importantes en Europe occidentale et dans d’autres démocraties libérales capitalistes 4. Initialement rejetée à titre de phénomène éphémère qui s’évanouirait rapidement, la droite radicale est parvenue à s’établir fermement comme concurrent sérieux et à rivaliser avec les partis établis pour l’obtention des votes et, de plus en plus, pour l’obtention des postes politiques comme par exemple en Autriche et en Italie 5. L’acceptation croissante des partis radicaux de droite comme des concurrents sérieux et légitimes dans la course au pouvoir politique soulève d’importantes questions quant à leur nature et à leurs objectifs. Au cours des derniè- res années, beaucoup de travaux universitaires ont tenté d’expliquer la montée et le succès électoral de ces partis 6. Plusieurs se sont concen- trés sur la recherche de facteurs structuraux et de développements qui pourraient aider à comprendre la vague d’appui populaire pour la droite radicale dans les années 1990. En même temps, il y a eu relati- vement peu d’analyses comparatives sérieuses des doctrines politiques, des fondements théoriques et des justifications idéologiques de ces partis 7. 2. Vlaams Blok, « Vooroordelen». Internet : < http://www.vlaams-blok.be/watzijnwe/ vooroorleden. html >. 3. « Our Nationality », BBC 2, 13 mai 2001. Internet : < http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/ english/static/audio_video/programmes/correspondent/transcripts/746195.txt >. 4. Pour une discussion expliquant pourquoi ces partis devraient être classés comme des partis populistes de droite plutôt que d’extrême droite ou néofascistes, voir Hans-Georg Betz, « Introduction », dans The New Politics of the Right, sous la dir. de H.-G. Betz et Stefan Immerfall, New York, St. Martin’s Press, 1998, p. 2-6. 5. Voir H.-G. Betz, « Exclusionary Populism in Austria, Italy, and Switzerland », International Journal, vol. 56, no 3, 2001, p. 392-420. 6. Voir par exemple Herbert Kitschelt, The Radical Right in Western Europe, Ann Arbor, University of Michigan Press, 1995. 7. Des exceptions notables sont les travaux comparatifs de Cas Muddle et de Marc Swyngedouw. Voir par exemple C. Muddle, The Ideology of the Extreme Right, Manchester, Manchester University Press, 2000 ; M. Swyngedouw et Gilles *Montage 21, 2 12/13/02 03:32 Page 11 Contre la mondialisation : xénophobie, politiques identitaires… 11 Résumé. Ces dernières années, la droite radicale populiste en Europe de l’Ouest a élaboré une position idéologique plus précise, laquelle est caractéri- sée par l’évocation du droit à la différence et une défense du particularisme culturel. Ces deux aspects sont employés afin de mobiliser un électorat contre la perception de deux grandes menaces externes à la culture et aux valeurs des sociétés européennes, soit la mondialisation et l’Islam. Par cette idéologie, la droite populiste a réussi à étendre sa clientèle au-delà des soi-disant groupes menacés par la modernisation économique, sociale et culturelle des sociétés occidentales. En raison de l’importance accrue des enjeux politiques de type culturel, notamment le thème de l’identité collective dans l’espace politique contemporain, l’idéologie populiste de droite constitue un défi de taille pour les démocraties pluralistes. Abstract. In recent years, the radical populist right in Western Europe developed a comprehensive ideological position. The central characteristics of this ideology are a strong emphasis on difference and on the defense of cultu- ral particularity. Both are used to mobilize support against what the populist right sees as the twin threats to the survival of European culture and Western values: globalization and Islam. With this ideology, the populist right has ap- pealed to a broad range of the electorate, which goes well beyond those groups objectively and subjectively most threatened by economic, social, and cultural modernization. Given the growing importance of cultural issues and particularly questions of collective identity in contemporary politics, the populist right is bound to continue to pose a considerable challenge to liberal democracies for the foreseeable future. Ce n’est pas sans bonnes raisons que l’on tente de passer sous silence, ou du moins de négliger, la question de l’idéologie et de la doctrine lorsqu’il s’agit d’analyser la droite radicale contemporaine. Contrairement aux précédents mouvements de l’extrême droite, ces partis ont généralement fait peu d’efforts pour appuyer leurs propo- sitions et leurs demandes politiques sur une structure idéologique plus vaste.
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